MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — One of the few Democratic Party representatives in the West Virginia House of Delegates does not consider the most recent legislative session to be productive.
Monongalia County Delegate Evan Hansen addressed a variety of concerns that he felt were either unaddressed or ignored entirely during the session that wrapped up less than two weeks ago. This included a combination of pieces of legislation he proposed that did not gain any traction during the session as well as what he feels were misdirected priorities related to specific aspects of Mountain State life.
“Overall it was a do-nothing legislative session, there’s a lot of focus on distractions and a lack of action on a lot of the big issues that are facing West Virginia,” said Hansen.
One of the priorities that Hansen hoped to address during the 2025 legislative session focused on the expansion of energy production that, according to the delegate, would’ve increased support for alternative energy while maintaining support for natural gas and capping energy rates. Other measures proposed included adjustments the West Virginia Public Service Commission by increasing oversight into appointments and modifying requirements on what types of energy can be produced in the Mountain State. With the bill not even getting a vote, Hansen expressed frustration over the lack of progress on one of his priorities for the session.
“I had a discharge motion on the House floor to try and bring that cap on electric rates to a vote, and the Republicans wouldn’t even allow that to come up,” said Hansen.
Not only were there pieces of proposed legislation focused on energy production in the Mountain State that Hansen feels should’ve been addressed, but there were also pieces of legislation proposed by the Republican supermajority that Hansen felt were counterproductive. The most noticeable for Hansen focused on H.B. 3279, which removed students, faculty, and staff from having voting roles on the boards of governors at universities like West Virginia University. With the bill barely passing on a state level in a Republican supermajority, Hansen felt that bill was reflective of the session as a whole.
“Education is also really important to have a qualified workforce, and that means supporting K-12 education, but also higher education,” said Hansen on WAJR’s Talk of the Town. “And I have concerns about the approaches that are being taken related to education as well.”
In reaction to murmurs regarding a potential special session that would be hosted to address pay scales for certain state employees, Hansen stated that he would support any level of salary adjustments for state workers. While he openly supported any future legislation related to locality pay, he also expressed a desire to address increases to PEIA, another issue that was barely addressed despite passing a data center-focused bill within three days of the legislation closing.
“I’m very much open to locality pay, and I think other legislatures in parts of the state where the cost of living is high are also open to it,” said Hansen. “But it’s been a challenge to get that through the legislature, and so, I would support those concepts.”